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... urgent of God" and began a new life as a traveling preacher (Washington XV). Isabelle soon recognized that the name she had been given as a slave was inappropriate for someone starting out a new life as God's pilgrim. She wanted a free woman's name. She asked God for guidance, and chose the name Sojourner, coming from the word sojourn, meaning to travel.
Her intent was to "travel up and down the land, showing the people their sins, and being a sign unto them. " (Krass, 59). She also chose the last name Truth. She proclaimed her mission would be to "sojourn" the land and speak God's "truth. " (Washington XV). Henceforth, Isabelle no longer existed, but was reborn as Sojourner Truth.
Sojourner Truth traveled all around the country delivering God's word. As Harriet Beecher Stowe recollects, Truth stated: "I journeys round to camp-meeting, an' wherever folks is, an' I sets up my banner, an' then I sings, an' then folks always comes up round me, an' then I preaches to 'em. I tells 'em about Jesus, an' I tells 'em about the sins of this people. A great many always comes to hear me; an' they " re right good to me, too, an's ay they want to hear me agin. " Truth believed that God had made her a sign unto the nation, that her duty was to testify to all who listened of the sins against her people (Stowe). During her journeys, Truth had heard lecturers who advocated that women be given equal rights as men.
It was then that Truth decided to join their ranks in their battle for freedom. She had long before recognized the similarities in the conditions of women and slaves in the United States (Krass, 66 - 67). In 1851, Sojourner Truth attended a woman's rights convention at Akron Church, in Akron, Ohio. Upon the first sight of Truth, the women at the convention began to stir. They turned to Francis Gage, pleading that she not allow Truth to speak.
They feared that in allowing Truth to speak, abolitionism would be mixed with their cause, and that it would lead them to be denounced (Bernard, 164). On the second night of the convention, Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal, Presbyterian, and Universalistic ministers came to hear and to discuss the resolutions presented. One man commented on the superior intellect of man, another on the fact that Christ was man, stating that if God wanted man and woman to be equal, he would have given some token of this wish at that time. And yet another man remarked on that fact that it was a woman, not a man, who sinned by accepting the apple from the servant (Bernard, 165). From these statements, most women cowered in their pews, for there were few women at that time that dared to speak in meetings. While some cowered, others grew angry, and Mrs.
Frances Gage feared that the entire convention would break into "tears and hysterics" (Bernard, 165). It was then that Sojourner Truth slowly rose to her feet. Although there were many women there who wished her not to speak, she began her famous, extemporaneous speech, Ar " nt I a Woman. She began her speech by reiterating the question, "Ar " nt I a woman?" while proclaiming that she could do any work that a man could do. She asked what intellect had to do with the rights of blacks or women. "If my cup won't hold but a pint, and yours holds a quart, wouldn't you be mean not to let me have my little half-measure full?" she asked. She moved on to the next man who stated that women couldn't have the same rights as men because Christ was a man, and she said to him, "Where did your Christ come from?" Both from God and from a woman was Truth's reply, "Man had nothing to do with him. " Finally, she turned to the women and stated, "If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back and get it right-side-up again. " (Bernard, 166 - 167).
This became one of Sojourner Truth's most famous speeches, although it was never accurately recorded. It was reconstructed as best as it could be, though you can see the small discrepancies in her speech through different sources. Word easily spread that she was a dramatic and inspirational speaker, leaving audiences filled with emotion. "The simplicity of her language and the sincerity of her message, combined with the courage of her convictions, made Sojourner a sought-after speaker" (Mckissack, 85). "Truth soon became known for her simple but moving antislavery speeches and her witty, biting attacks on the hypocrisy of people who owned slaves and yet professed to be Christians" (Krass, 72). This did not cure all the hardships in Truth's life. Western states were particularly vicious toward abolitionists, and on one occasion, Sojourner was told that the building that she was to speak in would be burned if she attempted to give her address. "Then I will speak to the ashes, " she replied.
In another instance, she was mauled so badly in an attack, that she had to walk the rest of her life with a cane. Yet, these such instances did not sway Sojourner Truth. She believed that God would protect her, and that her message "warranted the danger involved in its deliverance" (Washington, XI). There are many accomplishments that Truth had in her lifetime.
I have tried, to the best of my abilities, to restrict this paper to a religious significance, and I must end here. Sojourner Truth died on November 26, 1883. She had been mortally ill for two months in the late fall, and heroic yet unsuccessful attempts were made to cure the ulcers on her legs. "By late November 1883, she was wasted and weak, too emaciated to wear her false teeth" (Painter, 254). She had ministered to all that would listen for the past 40 years.
In return for His guidance, Truth became His faithful servant, continually ignoring her own hardships (Krass, 105). It is believed that her last words were: "Be a follower of the Lord Jesus" (Painter, 254). Devoting her entire life to the Lord's ministry, she traveled endlessly, leaving an inspiring legacy. Bibliography: WORKS CITED 1.
Bernard, Jacqueline. Journey Toward Freedom: The Story of Sojourner Truth. New York: W. W. Norton & Company. 1967. 2. Krass, Peter.
Sojourner Truth: Antislavery Activist. New York: Chelsea House Publishers. 1988. 3. Mckissack, P. C. & Mckissack F.
Sojourner Truth Ain't I a Woman. New York: Scholastic Inc. 1970. 4. Painter, Nell Irvin. Sojourner Truth: A Life, A Symbol.
New York: W. W. Norton & Company. 1996. 5. Stowe, Harriet Beecher. "Sojourner Truth, the Libyan Sibyl. " Atlantic Montly.
April 1863: p 473. 6. video recording. The Life of Sojourner Truth: Ain't I a Woman. Illinois: Learning Corporation of America. 1970. 7. Washington, Margaret. Narrative of Sojourner Truth.
New York: Random House, Inc. 1993.
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